Help Hurricane Sandy Pets

A caravan of pet food deliveries will head to the hardest hit areas recovering from Sandy this weekend. Photo courtesy of Instinct Dog Behavior and Training.

While the Lower East Side continues to rise to its feet in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, neighborhoods that bore the more vicious brunt of the storm are still struggling to provide basic services and sustenance to their residents. This weekend, The Lo-Down is helping to sponsor a pet food drive to those areas where governmental and nonprofit organizations are leading the efforts for human aid but have few initiatives for pets. LES residents can drop off pet items (list below) on Saturday, Nov. 10, at Ruff Club, 34 Ave. A in the East Village, from noon to 3 p.m. Uptown, Instinct Dog Behavior and Training is accepting donations at 1795 Lexington Ave. in East Harlem, also from noon to 3 p.m.

The effort is backed by Bayou Rescue, a North Carolina-based national nonprofit founded during Hurricane Katrina to provide assistance to companion animals and their families during disasters. Tax-deductible financial donations to help purchase supplies for this weekend’s drive can be made online here.

Click through to read the full press release.

Help Hurricane Sandy Pets

Ten days have passed since Hurricane Sandy battered all five boroughs of New York City, Long Island and coastal New Jersey. While enormous governmental and nonprofit relief efforts brought food, water, blankets and baby supplies to the hardest-hit areas where residents remain without power and basic amenities, food and supplies for companion animals remain especially scarce. In fact, many residents remain huddled in damaged homes, still unable to venture very far for supplies. They are very grateful for any provisions to care for their furry family members. Carloads of supplies have been emptied with such astonishing speed that reinforcements are a critical need. That’s where together we can help.

With the support of Bayou Rescue, a national nonprofit group founded during Hurricane Katrina and based in North Carolina, and The Lo-Down, a Lower East Side online news site and magazine, a group of Manhattan residents and business owners are collecting pet food and supplies, as well as cash donations to purchase them. A caravan of vehicles and volunteers has been coordinated to deliver supplies to areas in need including the shore towns of Staten Island, Queens, and Long Island on Sunday, Nov. 11.

Donate funds to help us purchase supplies: Make a tax-deductible financial donation to Bayou Rescue by visiting BayouRescue.org/donate. Please note “Hurricane Sandy Pets” in the memo section of your check to ensure your donation is properly routed.